When asked, only about nine-percent of Northeast Ohioans know that sustainability means living in ways that preserve natural resources for the future. But in the survey sponsored by the Northeast Ohio Sustainable Communities Consortium, more than two-thirds say it’s important to recycle, to improve air and water quality, and to preserve green space. The poll of about 800 people in 12 Northeast Ohio counties was conducted by Triad Research Group. Company president, Bob Dykes, believes the numbers show more people in the region are likely to start changing the way they live to be more sustainable.

Dykes: “It’s something that’s an emerging concept, it hasn’t been talked about a lot. But when we look at some of the things that go into making up a sustainable future, we find that people are genuinely very positive about those things. So, we will see more communication about sustainability in the future, and I think there will be a real receptivity in the public toward it.”

Nearly three-quarters of the survey respondents say adapting to changing conditions to preserve resources is more important than sticking to less sustainable traditional ways of doing things.